As Christmas is rapidly approaching we find ourselves at the beginning of cold and flu season, which is the worst.
Statistically most of us will get at least one cold every year, but there are things we can do to reduce the risk of catching one. Colds are caused by viruses that are so easily spread to other people by germs dispersed with coughs and sneezes that can live on hands and surfaces for 24 hours.
How to reduce the risk of catching a cold:
- Washing hands regularly with warm soapy water
- Avoid sharing household items with other people such as towels, mugs, glasses etc.
- Try to avoid touching your face (viruses can infect easily through the eyes and nose)
- Keep up with your exercise
- Eat a balanced, nutritious diet
- Sanitise surfaces regularly
To avoid spreading a cold:
Trap coughs and sneezes in a tissue
Dispose of the tissue as quickly as possible
If you have caught the dreaded common cold what can you do to get rid of it as quickly as possible?
Stay active
Regular physical activity boots the immune system and although you may not feel like running a marathon, a brisk walk could really help your body in shifting the sniffles.
Sleep
Do your best to get a regular 7-8 hours of sleep every night, sleep is where your body really gets to work in recovery and fighting off anything attacking your immune system.
Sanitise and disinfect
These pesky germs can survive on surfaces for 24-48 hours so regularly cleaning the areas that all of the germy people touch is going to really help eliminate the nasties
- Surfaces like desks and kitchen counters
- Door knobs or handles
- Tables
- Taps
- Remote controls
- Phones
- Computers
- Bannisters
Use your hand sanitiser
Obviously if you are leaving the house you can’t go around trying to disinfect public areas, but you can keep your hands clean by using a good hands sanitiser to reduce the risk of picking anything up.
Use especially after touching things like:
- Door knobs/ handles
- Railings
- Anything on a train/ bus
- Doors
- Escalator railing
Avoid sharing
It doesn’t sound great but sharing food/ drinks can be an easy way to catchy a cold. Unfortunately no matter how hygienic you are, you cannot agree others are doing the same- so be careful with bowls of crisps and nuts and beware of the double dippers!
Stop the nail biting
Now is the time to kick the bad habit to help avoid the germs!
Drink plenty of fluids
Staying hydrated is always key to feeling healthy.
